Most People With Heart Disease Are Consuming Too Much Salt

People with heart disease could benefit from a low-sodium diet but, on average, consume twice the recommended daily amount of salt, according to a study that was presented at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) 73rd Annual Scientific Session & Expo.

The US Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends most adults limit their sodium intake to less than 2300 mg/day, which is equivalent to about 1 teaspoon of table salt. For individuals with cardiovascular diseases, the recommended limit is 1500 mg/day, according to guideline recommendations from the ACC and the American Heart Association.

“Estimating sodium quantities in a meal can be challenging,” said Elsie Kodjoe, MD, MPH, an internal medicine resident at Piedmont Athens Regional Hospital in Athens, Georgia, and the study’s lead author, via a press release. “Food labels aid in dietary sodium estimation by providing sodium quantities in packaged food. Yet, adhering to a low-sodium diet remains challenging even for individuals with cardiovascular diseases who have a strong incentive to adhere.”

The new study analyzed more than 3100 patients with heart disease using data from those diagnosed with a heart attack, stroke, heart failure, coronary artery disease, or angina who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2009 and 2018.

According to the findings, 89% of individuals with heart disease consumed more than the recommended daily maximum of 1500 mg of sodium, and, on average, study participants consumed more than twice this amount. “The relatively small difference in sodium intake suggests that people with cardiovascular diseases are not limiting their intake very much compared with the general population and are also consuming more than double what is recommended,” Dr. Kodjoe said. “To make it easier for patients to adhere to dietary guidelines, we need to find more practical ways for the general public to estimate dietary sodium levels or perhaps consider a reduction in the sodium content of the food we consume right from the source.”